Try This Floral Beer from Nanjing's Craft Brewing Maestro

‘Beer of the Month’ is a regular series where our editors sample a unique craft beer. This month, our Guangzhou editorial team sampled Master Gao’s Baby Jasmine Tea Lager!

Based in Nanjing, Master Gao Brewing was founded back in 2008 and has received national – and even international – praise for their comprehensive catalogue of craft suds.

The brewery is headed up by the master himself, Gao Yan, who has been hailed by many as one of the founding fathers of China’s fast-growing craft beer scene. Since opening his Nanjing brewery over a decade ago, his boozy offerings have increased in number but maintained their commitment to ‘Chinese elements,’ both in packaging and taste.

“The charm of craft beer is that it is very tasty, and you can change its flavor as you wish to fulfill your desire of creation and give you a sense of achievement,” Gao told China Daily back in 2015.

And Master Gao’s beer is nothing if not tasty. We recently sampled his Baby Jasmine Tea Lager, a beer that offers drinkers a complex herbal slash hoppy taste, and we were hooked. The pale lager gives floral hints, courtesy of the jasmine tea, and, with an IBU of 25, a slight, hoppy kick that keeps things interesting.

Baby Jasmine Tea Lager also hosts a decent dose of alcohol, with an ABV of 4.8 percent.

Bottled at an Anhui beer factory, the beverage comes in a dark-glass, 330-mililiter bottle with colorful Sino-inspired designs. The design is visually striking, and its appearance is what first enticed us to purchase the beer from our local Hema supermarket.

If you’re a fan of slightly-hopped beers, sessionable suds or just want to sample a beverage made by one of China’s pioneering craft brewers, Master Gao’s Baby Jasmine Tea Lager is well worth a sip!

Baby Jasmine Tea Lager is available at Hema locations for RMB16.90 per bottle, or on Taobao.